The Little Engine That Could…

Do you remember this childhood story? I remember it well. Maybe because I’ve read it to my nieces, nephews, and my own son many, many times, this story about the little engine huffing and puffing his way up the mountain was always a favorite of theirs. I think it struck a cord because it was a classic tale of the little guy saying yes and going beyond his comfort level to persevere. This story was originally written by Watty Piper (a pseudonym used by the publishing house Platt & Munk) and published in 1954.

A quote from the book that is most famous today (which you may remember well) is one that I think all of us ought to look into adapting as our own- “I think I can, I think I can…” The thing I found most interesting was that this book was written to teach children the value of optimism. This is something we all need a great dose of now and often! I used to be so pessimistic and negative about my life, my work, etc. It’s been only recently, in the past 4 years, that I’ve really worked on this aspect of myself, and I think I’ve come a long way.

Hence, I’m writing today to inspire that little engine inside all of us to wake up and get back on that track and know that you can do it. You can do anything you set your mind to. I mean look at Oprah and her online book club course with Eckhart Tolle. It only took her and her engine of experts 1 week to fix the internet problem of having half a million people watch 90 minutes of streaming video all around the world and take Skype video/phone calls and email questions. I was in the class last night and was so thrilled to be able to see the whole thing. It was an amazing experience for me.

You might be thinking, well yeah, that’s Oprah, she can do anything. But that’s another discussion I’ll save for my newsletter. The point is- we all have the inner makings of being our own Oprah (so to speak:-)), of persevering, knowing that we can overcome that next obstacle. The thing is, we just have to take some action, even if it’s only one small step, to get up that mountain. So, what’s one small step you can take in your business to propel yourself forward? What do you need to help get you there? Because I know you can, and I know you will. I’d love to hear about it.

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